A car alarm wailed in the distance.

“Do you hear that Cass?”

“Genna, it’s just a car alarm… One of those things must have bumped into a car,” Cassidy replied.

“But that means it will bring more of them,” Genna stated worried.

Cassidy looked up from the cabin floor and took notice of the sun through the hole in the ceiling as it began to gain control of the sky. The sun rays cascaded through the fissure and illuminated the cabin’s main room; a ragged, cushion-less couch laid overturned against the wall furthest from the door and a single wooden chair jammed under the main entrance into the desolate cabin.

“Looks like the sun is coming up anyway. Let’s get moving”

The young girls gathered their sleeping bags from the cabin floor then quickly packed them into their backpacks.

“Got everything?” Cassidy asked.

“Yes.”

“Remember the rules?”

Genna nodded, “Always stay next to you, and don’t be scared.”

Cassidy removed the wooden chair from under the cabin doorknob; her hand on the knob she raised a ball-peen hammer prepared to strike down whatever obstacles lurked outside. Cassidy twisted and pulled the door from the frame to reveal the forest revived from the cool night by the sun’s radiant warmth. Genna stayed no more than a foot away from Cassidy as they trekked through the woods. They headed the opposite direction of the blaring car alarm and, as Genna predicted, creatures approached through the trees.

“Remember the rules,” Cassidy said sternly as the creatures took notice of them and changed their courses.

Cassidy rushed to the closest creature, Genna directly behind her as she delivered a hard blow to the side of its skull. Cassidy reached behind and gripped Genna’s backpack strap then changed their own course to dodge the rest with a quick jog. She created distance between herself and creatures with Genna in her tow.

“That was close!” Genna exclaimed as her teeth chattered from the adrenaline.

They shook off the fear coupled with adrenaline as they continued their journey through the woods for several hours without any attacks from creatures before Cassidy took notice of the suns decent from the sky.

“Okay we need to stop for now Genna.”

“But we don’t have anywhere to stay,” Genna expressed with worry.

“Well, we are just going to have to camp out here. Don’t worry; I’ll stay up while you sleep.”

Genna’s face still expressed worry as she laid out her sleeping bag while Cassidy rummaged through her backpack then pulled out a box of matches; she processed to gather some kindling such as small branches and dry leaves and after several matches managed to start a small fire.

“Genna, move your sleeping bag under those bushes,” ordered Cassidy.

Genna did as she was told and crawled into her sleeping bag shrouded from sight then Cassidy took a defensive position at the base of a tree across from Genna.

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“Do you have your knife?”

“Yes,” Genna replied exhaustedly as she pulled it from her pocket and held it close to her chest.

Cassidy sat patiently with a tight grip on the handle of her hammer as night had taken complete hold over the forest as only the glow from the small flame illuminated a small radius surrounding Cassidy and her sister. The occasional moan broke the silent stillness of the night which caused Cassidy’s alertness to rise more and her muscles tense along with the death grip around her ball-peen hammer.

The snap of a twig caused Cassidy’s heart to leap from her chest. She turned to see the small fire’s glow illuminate a disfigured creature. Its milky glazed eyes fully exposed with skin missing from sections of its sunken face as dirty strips of hair hung over its face and boney hands outreached. She jumped up and, without hesitation, charged toward the creature knocking it to the ground. Without a pause, Cassidy reused the hand gripping the hammer and brought it down caving in the creature’s skull with the forceful blow. Snarls erupted behind her as three more creatures emerged from the shadows into the glow of the small fire.

Genna’s scream pierced the night as a creature broke from its advance toward Cassidy and approached Genna as she stood in the glow of the flames, frozen in fear with her hand clenched around her pocket knife. Cassidy’s eyes widened in fear as she watched the creature’s approach to Genna, who was unable to move and struggle to reach her as the other creatures blocked her path. The creatures descend upon Cassidy; their outreached dead hands grasped her by the shirt and pulled her close, their gnashing teeth aimed at her neck barely stopped by Cassidy’s forearm as she struggled to hold them back.

Another scream sounds, Cassidy’s heart stopped and sunk as her struggle with the creatures began to falter, suddenly an arrow exited through the forehead of the creature to her left only inches from her face. Her struggle revived as she witnessed an arrow penetrate the head of the creature and fall before Genna’s feet then with her relief overpowered the creature and forced it to the forest floor, delivering a forceful blow to it head as it laid under her weight struggling to get free. Her eyes analyzed the shadows of the shadows, searching for the source of the arrows when a dark figured moved closer to small fire.

“Are y’all okay?!” called a man called as he materialized from the shadowed forest surrounding the small fire; camouflage paint covered the portion of his face that his backwards cap didn’t, his bow lowered as he approached toward the young girls.

“Yes, we’re fine,” Cassidy said cautiously as she moved closer to Genna with her hammer in hand, “Thank you.”

He moved around the flame to the fallen creatures and retrieved the arrows from their targets then took notice of Cassidy’s strong grip on her ball-peen hammer.

“Woah now, I’m not lookin’ for any trouble hun,” he stated dryly, placing the arrows into his backpack and unsheathed his Bowie knife then began to scavenge useable items.

Cassidy flinched and brought her hammer into a defensive position then moved closer to Genna, prepared for a fight.

“You need to calm down,” he stated coolly as he cut a leather necklace from one of the creatures, “And y’all need to be more careful out here.”

Cassidy stood in silence; her grip still tight on the handle of her ball-peen hammer with Genna tucked close behind Cassidy’s legs.

“Look, I’ll cut you a deal,” he stated as he sheathed the Bowie knife and placed the necklace in his Crown Royal pouch.

“What kind of deal?” she questioned as her eyes thinned as she stared him down, measuring him as a threat.

“How about this… We travel together until the next outpost. You need help staying alive and I can’t let y’all be out here all alone.”

Cassidy contemplated the offer as she continued to measure him in the glow of the flame then glanced down to Genna, who was still shaking from the previous attack.

She moved away from Genna and came close to the hunter, looking him dead in the eyes and gripped him by the upper arm, “Till the next outpost that is it. Don’t try anything funny or I’ll take you out.”

“Then it’s a deal,” he declared with a smile as Cassidy retreated to Genna.

The hunter began to move the freshly dead creatures away from the fire then took a seat against the base of a tree just outside the reach of the small fire, Cassidy sat back into her defensive position and Genna went back to her sleeping bag under the bush.

“Get some sleep hun,” he conveyed politely to Cassidy, “It’s gonna be a long walk tomorrow, I’ll keep watch.”

“How can I trust you?” Cassidy questioned still analyzing him.

“Sweetheart, I could have easily taken you down before exposin’ myself.”

“That doesn’t exactly help…”

“Here,” he sighed as he stood then leaned his bow against the tree she sat against, “That’s my prized possession, you hold onto that until the mornin’.”

She grabbed the bow then rested it across her lap but refused to close her eyes; the adrenaline began to fade, and her body begged her for sleep then slumber conquered as her eyes fluttered shut.